To find out which population segment you belong to, take the Self Identification Survey

Small Town Stalwart (16% of the population)

• Equally men and women (52% female)
• 40% drive a mid-sized car.
• Tend to be older (39% are 55 years or older)
• Lower income (44% make less than $44,000)
• Least likely segment to be married (55% married)
• Least likely segment to be Catholic (27%)

Identity Statement
Older in age, Small Town Stalwarts live a simple life and trust the government to take care of them. They prefer Kitchener to be focused on building a family-oriented community with a small-town feel and on a better quality of life for its residents. Small Town Stalwarts differ from Small Town Promoters by favouring tougher environmental by-laws, higher taxes for better quality services and more investment on public transit and bike trails.

Growth / Development
Fearful of change and wanting to maintain 'small-town Kitchener', Small Town Stalwarts are generally leery of development which they see as potentially harmful to them personally. Because they are in favour of higher services, they may support development as a way of strengthening the tax base to pay for those higher services they want and need.

Taxes
Perhaps surprisingly due to their general willingness to pay more taxes for higher quality services, Small Town Stalwarts are the only segment of the population who do not wish to see an increase in the budget for any of the services listed in the survey. They are less opposed to an increase in spending on the three services they are most familiar with: registration for programs, firefighting, and seniors’ services.

City Services
As a result of their lack of active involvement with the community, Small Town Stalwarts are unfamiliar with many of the city’s services. Notably, are unsatisfied with the public participation in city planning, business licensing, cemeteries and indoor sports. They are only satisfied with the preservation of heritage buildings, accessibility and the methods of payments the city offers.

Likes About Kitchener

• Size / Small Town Feel (22%)
• Parks (14%)
• People / Charm (13%)
• Distance To Other Things / Location (13%)
• Community Centres / Library (10%)

Dislikes About Kitchener

• Traffic Problems / Congestion (18%)
• Downtown / Core (17%)
• Crime / Unsafe (14%)
• Road Conditions / Potholes (13%)
• Growing Too Fast / Too Big / Urban Sprawl (12%)

Involvement in Government
Not politically involved, Small Town Stalwarts have a split view of government. While they have a high
level of confidence in government, they want the government to be less involved in their lives and have a nature tendency to question the ideas of those in power.

Interesting Fact
Believing that they have gotten this far in life solely with their wits, they are not ready to risk it all now for a potentially greater reward.